Royal Automobile Club’s Peter Read’s trove

This obsessive sports and supercar owner, concours stalwart and former businessman is chairman of the Royal Automobile Club’s motoring committee

I spent 37 years at accountancy company KPMG, the last 23 as a partner. We never had gold watches or awards for long service if you were a partner, but a bunch of us who used to drink together had our own awards for 25 years. Mine was this Only Fools and Horses clock, which they thought appropriate because of my interest in all things motoring.

You would not believe it looking at me now but, from 11 to 15, I was a trampolinist and competed at school, national and even international level. I have a number of trophies and medals lurking around and this one is a gold from the British championships in 1972.

I didn’t play cricket because I was always on the trampoline, but I am now a non-executive director of the Professional Cricketers’ Association and have got to know a number of players very well. In 2011 I was treasurer of England and Essex wicketkeeper James Foster’s benefit and in 2014 I chaired England captain Alastair Cook’s benefit. I have one of Cooky’s benefit ties – signed – plus a bat autographed by Graham Gooch thanking me for helping Fozzy. I also have a bat signed by the full England team who celebrated my retirement from KPMG.

No-one makes Pagani cufflinks so my wife had these made for me, mimicking the exhaust layout. They are really special, even though I no longer have the cars.

In 2016, we named a restaurant at the RAC Woodcote Park ‘Stirling’s’, after Sir Stirling Moss. I invited him to open it and arranged a small parade of C-type, D-type and XK120 to bring him in. While we were chatting in my XK120, Stirling signed my dashboard. The car was already special, having a period racing history, but now it is a great memory for me as well.

Horacio Pagani is a good friend. I was the first UK owner of both a Zonda and Huayra (both gone now) and, because the cars were seen at so many events, such as Geneva, Goodwood, Monaco and St James’s Palace, Horacio made me an honorary Pagani Ambassador in 2013 and gave me this montage of the many events, signed by everyone at the factory.

This lamp is made from an old car jack that Ben Cussons found in his garage. Seeing the brand was ‘READ’, he decided to paint and polish it as a present for me. It now has pride of place on my desk.

I have had many cars – classics, sports and supercars – since my first Ford Cortina on my 17th birthday, so my wife suggested I collect a 1:43-scale model of each one. This is just one of the cabinets!